A Pirates Heart by Catherine Friend: Audio Book Review

A Pirates Heart by Catherine Friend is a delightful audio book. Friend narrates the work and she does a great job. But let me first tell you about the story.

Our tale is set in two distinct times, one is modern day and one is 1715. The stories are somewhat parallel and yet very different, although they do intertwine.

1715 – the story of Captain Tommy Farris, a pirate ship captain who unexpectedly finds herself falling for a rescued slave. Between a great treasure heist and her ‘unnatural’ feelings for this woman, her world is turned upside down. Add to that a ruthless pirate that wants to destroy her and you have a great action adventure.

Today – rare book librarian Emma Boyd finds herself caught up in a whirlwind adventure as she is drawn into a modern hunt for a treasure map. The map was created by Caribbean pirate Thomasina Farris, who disappeared in 1715 without a trace. With the aid of a private investigator who is hot on the trail of a modern day pirate, Boyd needs to find the map before other interested parties.

As Boyd and the PI become closer, so more questions arise about Farris. Did she actually manage to steal and entire treasure from a Spanish galleon? How did she die? And where is the treasure now?

The modern day story is an action mystery with some romance splashed in for good measure.

The Writing Style

Friend wrote two separate stories so successfully that you could probably take them apart and create two distinct novels. This created a wonderful back and forth between the stories because just when she reached a high point in one she would cut to the next.

This would inevitably lead to me thinking – Darn, I was really enjoying that story, this one seems dull now – but within moments I was captivated by the new story. And bam just when I hit a peak it switched again.

This type of writing is not easy to accomplish but Friend did it successfully.

The Characters

Friend had a number of characters and I enjoyed every one of them. Tommy and Emma were the leads in their respective stories and yet they were worlds apart in personality and I liked them both for who they were.

She did an amazing job with filling out the characters so that you really loved them or hated them – as was the case with one or two.

The Narration

This is a wonderful audio book. The narration was perfect, the accents remained the same throughout and all-in-all I would give it full marks.

The Pros

A complex and brilliantly woven narrative. You will not see the plot twists coming and the ride is thrilling.

Pay attention to the story because she brings back things she spoke of earlier and suddenly they become important.

The Cons

I am just sorry it took me so long to discover Friend’s work. She is a great storyteller in both written and in audio narration.

The Conclusion

Friend has captured my heart with this one. I absolutely love it. She is a master storyteller and I am officially a huge fan.

Nicely done Dog Ear Audio because this is a spectacular audio book and a must-listen for all audio book fans.

Excerpt from A Pirates Heart by Catherine Friend

When Tommy gazed upon the third woman, she nearly swallowed her tongue. The woman didn’t hide her eyes, but gazed straight at Tommy, fearless, challenging. Her face wet from the sea, her ample bosom straining against the thin, wet dress, her long hair of tight black ropes – Good God Almighty, the figurehead from the Maravillosa stood before Tommy as a living, breathing woman. Her skin was the same dark coffee of the figurehead. Her black eyes snapped with anger. Her full mouth was set in a firm line.

“Captain,” Sawkins whispered near her ear. “You’ll not be wanting that one. She’ll be too saucy, mark my words. Take one of the other two. Either a them’ll shape up nicely, doing what you want without complaint.”

Tommy didn’t want a slave. She wanted a woman – that woman – to agree of her own volition to stay on board and earn her keep in Tommy’s service.

Buy this book Audio Book on Audible/Amazon

Bits and Bobs

ISBN: 978-1602820401

Publisher: Bold Strokes Books

Audio Book Publisher: Dog Ear Audio

Narrated by: Catherine Friend

Note: I received a free review copy of A Pirates Heart by Catherine Friend as audio book for review. No money was exchanged for this review. I will always endeavour to review books as honestly as possible and on occasion I refuse to review books.

When rare book librarian Emma Boyd searches for a pirate's long-lost treasure map, she learns the hard way that pirates still exist in today's world - and some modern pirates steal maps, others steal hearts.

She discovered lesbian fiction when she was 19. Radclyffe and Karin Kallmaker soon became favourite authors and she spent a large part of her hard earned income on shipping books from Amazon.com to her home in South Africa.

Over the years she became frustrated with purchasing mediocre lesbian fiction feeling like it was a waste of her money and time. And so she decided to share only the best books and movies with lesbians who are looking for only the best. And so, The Lesbian Review was born